This document is a guide to be used by campuses as they record for each student, the: (a) rationale or need for the supports and services, (b) narrative or description of the supports and services, and (c) session notes or the provision of evidential supports and services.
Staff Responsibilities: When a Student with a Disability Transfers from Outside of HISD
The Registrar/Office Staff will:
Enroll the student with a disability.
Complete RFM Data Collection form, submitting this form by email to RF Monitoring @houstonisd.org within the first week of enrollment (if applicable).
Contact previous school district to verify special education services for student transferring from within or outside state.
The Department Chairperson/Case Manager with the Registrar/Office Staff will:
Review documents (i.e., FIE, ARD/IEP report cards, transcripts, class schedule and state assessment participation) to determine if additional documents are needed.
Conduct a consultation with the parent/surrogate parent and/or adult student to discuss the student’s IEP from the previous district.
Email (and call if applicable) the evaluation staff and forward all applicable documents/reports.
If HISD provides comparable services to those described in previous IEP (until the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting), then the Registrar/Office Staff will add a note in the Chancery Special Services Referral Information memo section, see example below:
Student will be provided services comparable to those described in the IEP from the previous district. No ARD/IEP Committee Meeting is needed until the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting.
The 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting dates (three Notices are required) will be placed on the ARD/IEP Meeting Master Calendar.
If HISD will not provide the student with services comparable to those described in the previous IEP until the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting, then:
Registrar/Office Staff will add a note in Chancery Special Services Referral Information memo section ((i.e., student will not be provided services comparable to those from the previous district because (a) an IEP has not been provided to HISD or (b) the IEP is insufficient based on HISD criteria. A request for evaluation has been submitted to HISD evaluation staff. Evaluation results will be addressed at the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting. Services will be provided based on consultationwith the parents and prior school district).
The 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting dates (3 Notices are required) will be placed on the ARD/IEP meeting master calendar.
Email (and call if applicable) Hospital/Agency Teachers and forward all applicable documents/reports related to the student on their caseload.
Scheduled 30 Day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting with parent, surrogate parent, parent/adult student and appropriate staff (i.e., teacher, evaluation staff).
The Evaluation Staff will:
If FIE and accompanying data meet TEA and HISD guidelines, complete appropriate documentation of disability form (s) Out of District Summary Report in FIE Writer and create the FIE event.
If FIE and accompanying data do not meet TEA and HISD guidelines, then immediately begin the process required to evaluate the student. Once the student is evaluated, complete the appropriate documentation of disability form(s) and create FIE event in FIE writer.
Present the evaluation report and data to the ARD/IEP committee at the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting.
For students without an IEP or who’s IEP did not meet TEA/HISD criteria, this meeting should be held within the first two weeks of enrollment.
The Teacher will: Note: No matter if comparable services will or will not be provided:
Select and list the services to be provided under the Transfer Process(TP) tab in EasyIEP™
Services are based on those in the current IEP or as close an approximation to those described by the previous school district and parent(s) when the IEP is not available.
The Transfer Process tab provides access to a support tool within Easy IEP that allows case managers and service providers to document/chronicle supports and services (related and special education) provided to out-of-district transfer students prior to the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.
To chronicle the student’s activities over the 29 days prior to the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting, the user will access the Transfer Process tab and the Details button, where the documentation of services will be logged. A logging process will be initiated by accessing the Details button for each specific area. See the screen shot below:
Once the Details portion of the Transfer Process is accessed, the Details box will open to display areas that the department chair/teacher and service providers will complete prior to the logging of services. There are three text boxes that require special attention, the Rationale, Narrative, and Session Notes.
See the sample statements below: The Rationale statement will serve as a mini PLAAFP for the student until the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting or additional evaluations are requested. The information in the Rationale will be used, in part, to inform the Narrative which summarizes the supports and services the student previously received and those that HISD will provide. An effective Rationale should consider the following:
Student’s disability, eligibility for special education, and needs for special education
Reason the student is in a hospital/agency setting
All accommodations and or modifications needed to ensure FAPE
The following are sample Rationale statements:
Student: Joe
Joe is a 4th grade student with an emotional disturbance according to his Full and Individualized Evaluation (FIE) dated 1/13/2016 from Hallsville ISD. Instruction was provided in the general education setting (on grade level) with a teacher assistant to help mitigate elopement and self-injurious behavior in each class throughout the school day (bus and transition periods included). Joe received direct counseling from the social worker 3 times each week for 30 minutes each session. His counseling goals addressed elopement and self-injury, a copy was provided at enrollment. Joe will receive academic instruction by the classroom teacher and counseling by the social worker as often as he received these services on his home campus. These supports and services, including accommodations/modifications, areas of strength and weakness and areas of need will be in place and addressed at the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.
Student: Jessica Jessica is a 15-year-old 9th grader with a specific learning disability in math calculation and who received all of her classes in the general education setting. According to the guidance counselor at the prior school district, Jessica was exceling in all of her classes, including math. She took the STAAR test and exceeded expectations in all areas. She received counseling to address her drug and alcohol addiction 5 days each week for 30 minutes each day. Program documents were not available at time of enrollment but information from the maternal grandmother indicated that Jessica was a frequent run away. The school provided a list of accommodations and modifications, identified areas of strength, weaknesses and areas of need, placement information showing she received grade level instruction in the general education setting. The special education chairperson indicated that Jessica was awaiting a re-evaluation to determine continued eligibility for special education since she was excelling in all academic areas. Information about her former placement, program, IEP and FIE information has been requested from her former school, Mills High, in Larenzo ISD.
This section will help the user to create Narrative statements. See the sample statements below:
The Narrative statement summarizes the supports and services the student previously received and those that the district will provide while the student is enrolled. An effective Narrative should consider the following:
Where the information derived (i.e., FIE, parent, prior district, prior school)
What supports and services information was provided by outside sources
What supports and services the student will receive in Houston ISD
The following are sample Narrative statements:
Student: Joe Joe received grade-level instruction in all of his classes in 4th grade and has a current FIE. He received counseling to address his anger issues which manifests as lashing out and self-abusive behavior which created a danger to himself or others. Information concerning Joe’s prior placement, program, and IEP was obtained from Joe’s former district and parents. Joe will receive direct counseling for 30 minutes two time each week. The services will be provided in the general education setting. The information was discussed and reviewed by the itinerant teacher, department chairperson, LSSP, parent, and principal and will be used to guide the supports and services Joe will receive in his current placement until the 30-day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.
Student: Jessica Jessica is a 15-year-old 9th grader who received all of her classes in the general education setting. Information concerning Jessica was obtained through a grandparent interview and teleconference with her former district. Jessica she was removed from her mother’s home two weeks ago, and academic information was not available at time of enrollment. Information about her former placement, program, IEP, and FIE has been requested from her former school, Mills High, in Larenzo ISD. In the interim, based on the information obtained through interviews, Jessica will receive all instruction in the general education setting, as well as counseling, job-coaching, and tutorials to meet her educational and social-emotional needs.
Once the Details portion of the Transfer Process is completed. A Log button will appear, allowing the user to insert Session notes. This section will provide a sample of an effective session note.
The Session Notes statement will serve as a log of services for the student until the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting has been held and finalized. The following is a sample session note which should include:
Activities conducted during the session
Student performance during the session
Anecdotal statements concerning the student’s current physical and/or emotional state and how this impacts the student’s work
Sample Session Note Student: JoeJoe received instruction in note-taking during reading class. Twenty minutes were spent on using the note-taking guide to capture important information from a narrative essay read aloud by the teacher. The next 15 minutes were used to help Joe identify information that he missed during this exercise. Joe was provided a completed note-taking guide that he used to compare his notes to those on the sample. During the last 15 minutes Joe was able to discuss the outcome of his comparison, and to self-correct for grammar and punctuation; an area of weakness that requires further intervention. Joe’s next session will cover Choosing the correct form of the irregular verb and correcting the fragment in simple sentences.
This document is a guide to be used by campuses as they record for each student, the: (a) rationale or need for the supports and services, (b) narrative or description of the supports and services, and (c) session notes or the provision of evidential supports and services.
Staff Responsibilities: When a Student with a Disability Transfers from Outside of HISD
The Registrar/Office Staff will:
The Department Chairperson/Case Manager with the Registrar/Office Staff will:
Student will be provided services comparable to those described in the IEP from the previous district. No ARD/IEP Committee Meeting is needed until the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting.
Registrar/Office Staff will add a note in Chancery Special Services Referral Information memo section ((i.e., student will not be provided services comparable to those from the previous district because (a) an IEP has not been provided to HISD or (b) the IEP is insufficient based on HISD criteria. A request for evaluation has been submitted to HISD evaluation staff. Evaluation results will be addressed at the 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting. Services will be provided based on consultation with the parents and prior school district).
The 30-day Annual Placement ARD/IEP Committee meeting dates (3 Notices are required) will be placed on the ARD/IEP meeting master calendar.
The Evaluation Staff will:
For students without an IEP or who’s IEP did not meet TEA/HISD criteria, this meeting should be held within
the first two weeks of enrollment.
The Teacher will:
Note: No matter if comparable services will or will not be provided:
Services are based on those in the current IEP or as close an approximation to those described by the previous
school district and parent(s) when the IEP is not available.
The Transfer Process tab provides access to a support tool within Easy IEP that allows case managers and service providers to document/chronicle supports and services (related and special education) provided to out-of-district transfer students prior to the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.
To chronicle the student’s activities over the 29 days prior to the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting, the user will access the Transfer Process tab and the Details button, where the documentation of services will be logged. A logging process will be initiated by accessing the Details button for each specific area. See the screen shot below:
Once the Details portion of the Transfer Process is accessed, the Details box will open to display areas that the department chair/teacher and service providers will complete prior to the logging of services. There are three text boxes that require special attention, the Rationale, Narrative, and Session Notes.
The Rationale statement will serve as a mini PLAAFP for the student until the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting or additional evaluations are requested. The information in the Rationale will be used, in part, to inform the Narrative which summarizes the supports and services the student previously received and those that HISD will provide. An effective Rationale should consider the following:
The following are sample Rationale statements:
Student: Joe
Joe is a 4th grade student with an emotional disturbance according to his Full and Individualized Evaluation (FIE) dated 1/13/2016 from Hallsville ISD. Instruction was provided in the general education setting (on grade level) with a teacher assistant to help mitigate elopement and self-injurious behavior in each class throughout the school day (bus and transition periods included). Joe received direct counseling from the social worker 3 times each week for 30 minutes each session. His counseling goals addressed elopement and self-injury, a copy was provided at enrollment. Joe will receive academic instruction by the classroom teacher and counseling by the social worker as often as he received these services on his home campus. These supports and services, including accommodations/modifications, areas of strength and weakness and areas of need will be in place and addressed at the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.Student: Jessica
Jessica is a 15-year-old 9th grader with a specific learning disability in math calculation and who received all of her classes in the general education setting. According to the guidance counselor at the prior school district, Jessica was exceling in all of her classes, including math. She took the STAAR test and exceeded expectations in all areas. She received counseling to address her drug and alcohol addiction 5 days each week for 30 minutes each day. Program documents were not available at time of enrollment but information from the maternal grandmother indicated that Jessica was a frequent run away. The school provided a list of accommodations and modifications, identified areas of strength, weaknesses and areas of need, placement information showing she received grade level instruction in the general education setting. The special education chairperson indicated that Jessica was awaiting a re-evaluation to determine continued eligibility for special education since she was excelling in all academic areas. Information about her former placement, program, IEP and FIE information has been requested from her former school, Mills High, in Larenzo ISD.
This section will help the user to create Narrative statements. See the sample statements below:
The following are sample Narrative statements:
Student: Joe
Joe received grade-level instruction in all of his classes in 4th grade and has a current FIE. He received counseling to address his anger issues which manifests as lashing out and self-abusive behavior which created a danger to himself or others. Information concerning Joe’s prior placement, program, and IEP was obtained from Joe’s former district and parents. Joe will receive direct counseling for 30 minutes two time each week. The services will be provided in the general education setting. The information was discussed and reviewed by the itinerant teacher, department chairperson, LSSP, parent, and principal and will be used to guide the supports and services Joe will receive in his current placement until the 30-day Placement ARD/IEP meeting.
Student: Jessica
Jessica is a 15-year-old 9th grader who received all of her classes in the general education setting. Information concerning Jessica was obtained through a grandparent interview and teleconference with her former district. Jessica she was removed from her mother’s home two weeks ago, and academic information was not available at time of enrollment. Information about her former placement, program, IEP, and FIE has been requested from her former school, Mills High, in Larenzo ISD. In the interim, based on the information obtained through interviews, Jessica will receive all instruction in the general education setting, as well as counseling, job-coaching, and tutorials to meet her educational and social-emotional needs.
Once the Details portion of the Transfer Process is completed. A Log button will appear, allowing the user to insert Session notes. This section will provide a sample of an effective session note.
The Session Notes statement will serve as a log of services for the student until the 30-Day Placement ARD/IEP meeting has been held and finalized. The following is a sample session note which should include:
Sample Session Note
Student: JoeJoe received instruction in note-taking during reading class. Twenty minutes were spent on using the note-taking guide to capture important information from a narrative essay read aloud by the teacher. The next 15 minutes were used to help Joe identify information that he missed during this exercise. Joe was provided a completed note-taking guide that he used to compare his notes to those on the sample. During the last 15 minutes Joe was able to discuss the outcome of his comparison, and to self-correct for grammar and punctuation; an area of weakness that requires further intervention. Joe’s next session will cover Choosing the correct form of the irregular verb and correcting the fragment in simple sentences.